2012: a year in review

This is a long post, so grab a cuppa and pull up a comfy chair with me.....

2012 has been an amazing year of great change for me.

When I set my goals and aspirations in January I had lots of hopes for what I wanted to do and how much I wanted to change my life but didn't realise just how much I would really accomplish in those 12 months.  

Here's my vision board which set my intentions for 2012.  A bit faded now as it's been on my studio wall all year!  The figure half way down the right hand side is a much younger self, she's drawing with pastels.

My word for 2012 was CREATIVE and in my visoning session at the start of the year I set three main intentions: 

• be creative every day
• start my blog
• start my creative business 

Importantly, I also wanted to give myself TIME: time to be me, time to be creative, time to paint.

At the beginning of 2012, I was teaching holistic therapies, running my training business (Amethyst Holistic Training) AND trying to be creative every day.  I was crippled with back pain and running on empty; I knew that something BIG had to change before I crashed completely.  So, after much agonising I decided to give up teaching.  This was a major life change for me - I had been teaching therapies for 13 years, but I also knew that if I wanted to be creative and give myself time to do this, it had to happen. So, at the end of April I stopped teaching and gave myself time.

By March I had started my blog (you're reading it now!) and I had a steady routine of running my training business in the morning and painting/journalling in the afternoon.  Woohoo, two objective achieved!!

Starting my creative business took much longer and this is fine.  I wanted to give myself time and this is what I did.  I enjoyed painting and being creative; there was no hurry.  But during October, my guides and angels started hurrying me up.  They told me, in my little planning journal, that I could get the party started!! 

I think there was a general speeding up for lots of us as we got nearer to the big energy shift on 21.12.12.  In October I started to get enquiries from people interested in buying my work or prints of my work. October and November became a bit crazy as I spent more time on product development (cards and prints) rather than on creating (although I realise now I was creating but in a different way). 

And out of the blue, my goddess guides decided I should create a Yearbook!! For the last 3 years, I have written a monthly newsletter for my training biz.  I was writing the newsletter for November and a voice whispered in my ear, 'This could be a yearbook'............. Mmm, a yearbook I thought and then spent the next 6 weeks writing and creating it!!  

It became an entirely different creation to the Amethyst newsletter idea, with the goddess guides moving in and becoming the major focus.  You can read more about it and buy it in the shop!!  This was something I had not planned or thought about - so when you are doing your vision boards and setting your intentions for 2013, leave some space for unknown and amazing things to happen.........

I've come such a long way since January:

• In February I started painting again, largely thanks to the amazing Flora Bowley's Bloom True ecourse.
• In March I started my blog.
• In April I stopped teaching. I also went to see the utterly wonderful and inspiring David Hockney exhibition 'A Bigger Picture' at the Royal Academy in London.
• In May and June I took time to adjust to my new routine, painting and journalling.
• In July, my partner, John, and I took a much needed holiday in beautiful Northumberland.
• In August I started a new way of working thanks to Tracie Hansen's class in Connie Hozvicka's 21 Secrets Art Journal Playground.  Using this method as a starting point I have created my 'tribe' paintings featured on my blog and posted on FB and IG.
• In September I was a guest on Teresa Robinson's blog Rightbrainplanner. 
• In November, I started writing my Goddess Inspirations Yearbook & Planner, and opened my shop on the website with prints and cards.
• In December, I published my Yearbook and Planner! 

I have also: grown a supportive online community of friends and fellow creatives on Facebook and Instagram; taken part in Louise Gale's HeArt Exchange and Creative Color Challenge; joined The Art Journaler online community with Mandy and Teresa; gained new friends and lost some old ones as my energy and interests changed. I have experienced some heartache but SO much joy.  

I hope your year has been as full as mine.  I am truly grateful to the Universe for putting all these wonderful  opportunities in my way and my being brave enough to take part in them.  

What about 2013?  I'll be doing my vision board for the year and posting it here.  To begin with I have in mind more painting and getting back in the creative flow.  I'd like to do more regular blog posts and there are some Goddess oracle cards in the pipeline.

I haven't yet decided on my word for the year, though I have several floating in my head.  Have you chosen your word for 2013?  Have you set your intentions?  I would love to hear what you have planned or would like to achieve.  And if you have done a review of your year on your blog, please share a link in the comments below as I would love to check it out.

Wishing you all you wish yourself for a wonderful 2013

From my very grateful heart to yours

Rachel xox

Lotus flowers for Kwan Yin

In Buddhism and Hinduism the lotus flower represents purity and beauty.  The ancient Egyptians believed they related to re-birth and the sun.

For me the lotus flower represents Kwan Yin, the Chinese goddess and bodhisattva (or enlightened being). She is goddess of mercy, compassion and protection and her name means 'she who hears prayers'. Sometimes known as the Buddhist equivalent of Mother Mary, her energy is very gentle and I often ask Kwan Yin for help during my self healing in Angelic Reiki.   

I didn't set out to create a painting for Kwan Yin, and indeed there are three figures in the painting rather than one, but it is what it became.  The new pink colour is hers as are the lotus flowers.

Her message is that we need to have compassion for ourselves above all else and this is a message I really need right now.  There is a lovely quote from the chapter about Kwan Yin in Doreen Virtue's book 'Archangels and Ascended Masters':

Seek not opportunities, but allow them to gently come to you as a lotus flower floats upon the water amidst a gentle breeze....enjoy the process upon which you embark.  Know that each step along the way is akin to a party - a celebration of movement...

And that is why there are three figures dancing and partying amongst the lotus flowers!!  

What small steps are you taking?  Are you being kind to yourself? Really?

Hoping that you will be compassionate with your self this week and that like me you are gently allowing the process, but partying along the way...

From my heart to yours

Rachel xox

(ps I am sitting in my coat writing this - I had been for a walk and the message came through loud and clear from Kwan Yin - I had to sit down and write this as soon as I got in!!)

Let's dance! (the story of a painting)

This little painting kind of took me by surprise as it appeared very quickly; I usually work quite slowly and take ages to finish a piece of work.  

I take photos as I go along because it helps me to see the painting in a different way.  The camera shows you things that you don't necessarily see with the naked eye.  Because I have a series of photos I thought I would show its development step by step.

I chose a canvas I had already prepped with an underpainting of bright colour and then started to unearth the images already contained in the paint and colour.  I liked the movement in the brush strokes of the underpainting and I wanted to keep that energy.  

I was drawn to finding and painting images of the goddess or feminine energy;  I have worked with the goddess for a long time now and the muse usually (though not always) points me in this direction. 

Different elements such as the trees started to appear.  Orange and blue/green quickly established as the dominant colours. 

I found I wanted to keep the yellow architectural elements and the blue organic swirls at the top of the painting.  The figures became more established and the foreground more developed.  The figures needed some more definition and presence but I like that they are all very different and doing different things.  The final step is sharpening and tidying up.

Painting finished!

What artiness have you been up to this last week?  I would love to hear from you.

From my dancing goddess heart to yours

Rachel xox

Journal pages

Hi - it's been a while...

This week I'm proud to have been featured on The Right Brain Planner's website in Teresa Robinson's series inviting 'art journaling friends to share images from their art journals'.  You can see my story and images from my pages at http://www.rightbrainplanner.com/art-journaling-as-a-way-back-into-making-art-rachels-art-her-story/

Thank you Teresa for your invitation and opportunity to share my some of my journal pages.  It made me realise I hadn't shared my art for a few weeks, so here they are...

Last time I posted I had been delving deep with Tracie Hansens's Journalling Quest class from 21 Secrets (Art Journal Playground).  I have been so gripped and absorbed by this art journaling technique that I have continued to use this journal questing to create my pages.

I have been grounding myself with the tree and rock people...

communing with the naiads and water nymphs...

and transforming some dark matter with the orange and purple fire people...

I'm loving watching my tribes appear.  

My aim is to take this means of painting and journaling and use it on canvas and I have started already, but what has happened will have to wait till next time.

What have you been questing for in your journal pages or transforming in your life?

Have a great weekend

From my transforming heart to yours

Rachel xox